It is with some trepidation I call this summer reads, considering the complete drenching we've had in the last few days. I keep telling myself its good for the garden and reservoirs, even after getting so soaked that I could pour water out of my boots. Summer! So, if the weather is being unpleasant let us escape into literature and memoir. I'm going to give you images of the books that Luise and Jo talked about so that you can see at a glance the titles mentioned. I think I got them all, but do let us know if there's one missing. And also do recommend any titles you've loved that you really want to share, we want to hear!! So onto the books...
Great Fiction
A lovely selection of various types of fiction, some unsettling and gripping, some historical, all stonking good reads. There's sure to be something in this selection for those of you who love a good story. And if you didn't have a look at the first line of Viral, seek it out, you'll understand exactly why it wasn't read out loud! There would have been many a red face...
You will have heard Luise mention the Thame Arts and Literature Festival, taking place in October. They are launching the Big Thame Read and want to get as many people reading I See You by Clare Mackintosh as possible. Click here for the TAL website and watch that space.
The last three in the selection below are ones that I have gleaned from The Book House Facebook page. Do follow them if you're not already as there's regular recommendations for reading and events they have.
Easy Reads These were some of the titles Luise recommended if you want something that will keep you interested but isn't going to keep you up at night worrying! Whether you fancy some magical realism, WW2 spy fiction or wincingly funny vignettes of British life, there's sure to be something to find here. I've also added a recommendation of Dodie Smith's I Capture the Castle which I am always telling people to read as a summery book. Strangely I can't recall if it's set in the summer but when I think of it, summer is what comes to mind. Maybe it's time for a re-read.
Nature Writing
I must first of all declare my interest here, I'm completely mad about nature writing. There's something distinctly calming about reading about the land that surrounds us. The beautiful set of books produced by Vintage (in association with wallpaper and fabric designer Timorous Beastie, was there was ever a better name for a company?) are not only objects to treasure they really are some of the best books written on their subjects. A word of warning, I found H for Hawk hugely moving, you can see her moving through her grief, and I required tissues. Though I am a huge wet lettuce about most things, RSPCA adverts set me off....
And if you are diligently working your way through your TBR (to be read) pile, then save Landmarks for last. Each chapter is woven around another book or writer and the way he writes is so enthusiastic and in part elegiac that you can't help but want to follow him down the literary rabbit hole.
Black Classics
These are brilliant. I grabbed a few more titles to show you here, and I've often perused the selection in The Book House. The range of authors and subject matter is just what you'd expect from Penguin Classics.
Ladybird Pastiche
These are also brilliant. Perfect for any silly gift you might want to give. There are a few more titles than pictured below. And if you wanted to know more about the original non Penguin produced pastiche 'We go to the gallery' visit the publisher website, Dung Beetle Learning....
Older teens
In my past life as a bookseller, we battled against publishers printing age ranges on the books. Our shop was arranged within rough age groups, we didn't feel it need any further segmentation and it was thought that to write an age on a book put children off, especially if they find reading harder and are reading books that are 'younger'. It was a bone of contention for authors, booksellers, librarians and some publishers. So you can trust that these age ranges are purely for rough guidance regarding subject matter. I still read teen books, some the best books published in the last few years have been aimed at teens, and even kids (Harry Potter, His Dark Materials, The Fault in our Stars). So these are totally books you can read. They are are also books your older teenagers can read. I'd roughly say 14+ but that's up to you. Some parents are very wary of books that have too much adult content, either language or situations and others are more comfortable with it.
I'm also adding an addendum to Luise's comments about the brilliance of Patrick Ness. He is a beautiful writer, he deal with 'issues' with grace and care. The Rest of Us Just Live Here is really good, but I think to read him at his best, read A Monster Calls. The idea for the novel (a teenage boy sort of pursued by a creature whilst his mother is being treated for cancer) was originally started by a superb writer called Siobhan Dowd, but she sadly lost her own battle with cancer, so Patrick Ness took what she had and her rough plan for it and turned it into a book that I actually find it hard to talk about. My own experience of cancer has been mercifully distant, it hasn't become a 'monster' in my life but I can see how it can for those watching a loved one fighting it. Another warning here, I needed tissues galore.
Younger Teens (11+)
These three books are ones with which I am not all that familiar but I want to read them all! The Girl of Ink and Stars sounds similar (in a good way) to an adult book I read years ago called The Vanishing Act by Mette Jakobsen. So there's another one to add to your TBR if that appealed to you.
Younger Readers (7+)
There's a huge amount of variety for younger readers, din inosaurs, dinosaurs in space, pirates, pirates on dinosaurs in space, fairies, pets, fairy pets, rainbow coloured unicorns in space riding dinosaurs chasing pirates and so on. I grabbed a few titles that I spotted on the table on Thursday evening, including the great David Solomons novel from which we were treated to an extract. It's always seemed a slight mystery as to how the books that are most popular catch the imagination of children. I can recall with horror the near stampede of small squealing girls who nearly killed me to get their paws on the latest Rainbow Magic Fairy books. For the life of me I couldn't understand the attraction! This is all to say that kids find weird stuff entertaining, so take them down to The Book House and let them peruse!
Picture Books 3+
I say that age range knowing it's mostly nonsense. My son who is not even 3 yet would enjoy these, but he might not treat them with the care I would wish for! Stories before bedtime are an intrinsic part of life, to my way of thinking and we learn to love books, in the most part, by being read to as young children. There's so many beautiful picture books; funny, poignant, revolting, rhyming, free verse, surreal and all else in between. They are one of the types of books that it's a real joy to browse and chose simply because something about it appealed. Now obviously, every right minded Belle will be buying Lottie Potter wants a Otter, if only to challenge themselves to achieve excellence in the field of reading aloud. Well done Luise, you've set the bar, or to the more competitive, thrown down the gauntlet!
There's no summary really I can offer to the evenings main event except to say a big fat thank you to Luise and Jo for coming along and giving such a warm, funny and informative talk. See you again next year!
In other news, we announced the winner for The Denman Bursary, Sarah Randall, who will be using the funds to do a super course and hopefully come back full of inspiration to share with the Belles, even if it's just how brilliant it is to go to Denman. And whilst we're on the subject (did you enjoy the smoothness of that segue?) we launched our Denman fundraising effort last night. For those that missed it, here's the deal. The Oxfordshire Federation President sent us £5 and asked that we spend until next April turning that into more money. So after throwing some ideas around, the committee landed on an idea to have a rollover raffle. So, we took our £5 and bought a Book Token, which we then raffled off for £1 a ticket. 54 of you bought tickets, so we've got off to a fantastic start. We then take that £54 and split it in half. One half goes into the Denman Fund, the other we spend on a raffle prize for next month's meeting. The idea being that the prize gets better each month. Who knows where we might end up!! So thank you so much for diving in with such enthusiasm.
Hannah also gave us an update on the Craft and Gift Fair we shall be holding on Saturday 22nd October, at the Town Hall. Our christmas shopping evening was such a great success that is was decided to make it a dedicated event, instead of part of our schedule of meetings and have it during the day. We're offering tables to Belles first, so if you are a crafter or have a business that would suit, please contact Hannah for more details. We're also looking for volunteers to help on the day for setting up, running raffles, helping with the cafe, breaking it all down afterwards and the 100 other jobs that crop up with events like this. This is part of our fundraising effort to go towards being able to provide you with great events throughout the year, so if you can spare a few hours please let us know!
Thanks for reading all the way to the end, and as always, please do contact us with any news, ideas or suggestions. I'm especially keen to hear more recommendations for summer reads, so comment on our Facebook page if you've got anything to let us know.